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DIY Monogram Planter Tutorial

Written by Cass

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Letter K Monogram Planter Plans Remodelaholic

Follow this step-by-step tutorial and woodworking plans to build this large outdoor DIY monogram planter in the letter of your choice, for a welcoming and personalized front porch decoration.

Sometimes we see an idea that we love and we know you will too — but we underestimate just how much you all will love it. This beautiful DIY monogram planter has gone viral over on Facebook with over 125 THOUSAND shares in just a couple of days! Michelle and her husband Ryan are here today sharing all the details about how to build your own letter planter. 

Extra large monogram planter, built with cedar - tutorial and woodworking plans for many letter planters

On top of being just stunning with those impatiens in bloom, this monogram planter is a great way to get in some practice with a compound miter saw! The cuts will vary depending on which letter you choose, but our new woodworking plans include all the cut and angle information to make it as easy as possible. 

Michelle and Ryan’s letter planter design creates mini planter rows for the soil and plants, so you can replant as often as you want, unlike some of the monogram planters that I’ve seen that use chicken wire to hold the plants in, making it more like a one-time planting experience. It looks great with flowers, but wouldn’t this be a fun herb garden, too?

Huge outdoor cedar DIY monogram planter letter

Enough of me gushing… here is Michelle with all the details for you to build your own!

This post contains affiliate links. See our full disclosure policy here. 

Outdoor DIY Monogram Planter
by Michelle from Ellery Designs

Get printable monogram planter plans here

More letters are coming soon — take the survey here to tell us which letter to do plans for next.

DIY Monogram Planter Plans

Update May 2020: We’ve created full detailed woodworking plans to help you build your own monogram planter! Use the drop-down menu below to choose from the available plans. More letter planter plans are coming soon — take the survey here to tell us which letter to do plans for next.

How to Build Your Own Custom DIY Monogram Planter

Hi there! Michelle here with Ellery Designs and I’m so excited to be guest posting our DIY Monogram Planter with the Remodelaholic readers! This had such a positive response on social media and I’m so excited to share the details with you today. The letter we made is really large – 4 ft x 4.5 ft x 5 inches deep to be exact. My hubby came up with this idea and executed it all! I just planted it 🙂 The options are endless – I can’t wait to decorate it differently for each season and holiday! Fake blooms would look great here too if you don’t want to worry about watering.

Large outdoor cedar DIY monogram planter for shaded porch decoration - tutorial and woodworking plans Remodelaholic.comDIY Monogram Planter Materials

The printable woodworking plans include specific material and cut lists for each letter. 

  • Cedar (purchased at Menards)
    • 1×12 cedar for the back of the letter*
    • 1×4 cedar for the sides
    • 1×3 cedar for the front
    • 1×6 cedar for the planter slats
  • 18 gauge 1 3/4 brad nails (and nail gun)
  • Gorilla Wood Glue (used on all of the joints with the brads)
  • Compound Miter Saw
  • Kreg-Jig
  • Miracle Gro Potting Mix
  • Flowers (We used impatiens since this is a shaded area.)

Cost

Obviously the materials will vary depending on how large you construct your initial and what letter you will be building. Like I mentioned earlier, our K is really large (4 feet tall!) so it wasn’t a cheap project. The material for the cedar cost approx $150 and the plant material and soil was roughly $40 but had many left over flowers.

*We used 1×12 cedar for the backing, but the woodworking plans use 1×6 lumber since it’s more readily available in all areas and typically a bit less expensive.

See more DIY planter tutorials here

DIY Monogram Planter Step by Step Tutorial

First, Ryan built the base/backside of the K – no, he didn’t trace anything just kind of created it as he went. But we’ve done the math for you to calculate lengths and angles for each letter monogram woodworking plan!

how to build your own large outdoor DIY monogram planter, by Ellery Designs on @Remodelaholic

He made the base of the K using 1×12’s and used his kreg jig to piece this together.

how to build your own large outdoor DIY monogram planter, by Ellery Designs on @Remodelaholic

Next, he used the 1×4 pieces of cedar to complete the sides. Yes, it’s a lot of cuts and patience. But again — we did the math for you in the monogram letter planter woodworking plans to make it as easy as possible!

He used his compound miter saw to make all of the cuts. Each piece is secured with brad nails and Gorilla Wood Glue.

After the sides are complete, next are 1×3’s for the front pieces, the letter “frame” trim. Again, a lot more cuts (which are calculated for you in the printable plans! 😉 )

how to build your own large outdoor DIY monogram planter, by Ellery Designs on @Remodelaholic

Next, he completed the inside planter slats using 1×6 cedar, mitered along the back edges using a table saw and using brad nails to secure in place at a 45 degree angle.

Related: Make your table saw easier to use with a DIY table saw workbench.

Once the slats were complete, he drilled small holes on the bottom of each one to allow for water to drain properly. (Note that in the woodworking plans, for ease of construction, the slats are installed before the front trim.)

The slats are about 7 inches apart, and the placement gives about 3 1/2″ of soil depth for planting.

how to build your own large outdoor monogram planter letter, by Ellery Designs on @Remodelaholic

Lastly, he hung it up by screwing it directly into the siding using extra long screws. Be sure to use the appropriate hardware for your material, because this is a large heavy planter!

diy outdoor monogram planter by Ellery Designs on @Remodelaholic

Next it was time to plant this baby! Since this is a fully shaded area, my options were limited as to which flowers would work in shade only, so went with colorful impatiens.

One thing I learned is do not over pack with dirt – less is more. The first time you water them it may be a bit messy with excess dirt pouring out but not a big deal! You could add landscape fabric or old coffee filters to keep the soil from washing out.

We only water these about every three days or so since these flowers are very easy to keep alive and low maintenance. Again, since this is made of cedar and our siding is vinyl we don’t need to worry about any water damage.

how to build your own large outdoor monogram letter planter, by Ellery Designs on @Remodelaholic (1)

And that’s it!! I know, it’s a bit complicated if you’re not comfortable using saws and intricate cuts but I’m beyond happy with how this turned out! And now that we’ve created detailed woodworking plans for many letters (and more coming!), we’ve made the cuts as easy possible for you. 

The best part – it was 100% a unique idea! Kudos to my handy hubby! Like I said, your options are endless!

See the monogram letter planter plans we’ve created so far here — and fill out this survey to tell us what letter you want next!

diy outdoor monogram planter by Ellery Designs on @Remodelaholic

We hope you love it as much as we do! If you give it a try, be sure to share and tag me @ellerydesigns on Instagram so I can see!

Get the printable monogram planter tutorial + plans HERE

Michelle, thank you so much for sharing you beautiful planter!! Remodelaholics, be sure to pay Michelle a visit over at Ellery Designs to see more:

ellery designs kitchen remodel ellery designs dining room pallet wall and floating shelves ellery designs painting cabinets

Looking for more great outdoor project plans?

  • Build an arched garden arbor trellis
  • Build a patio table with drink coolers (or a coffee table version)
  • Build a raised garden bed table

Extra large monogram planter. Built with weather resistant cedar. Woodworking plans for different alphabet letters. #Remodelaholiclarge outdoor DIY monogram letter planter by Ellery Designs on @Remodelaholic

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Remodelaholic is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com. Please see our full disclosure here.
We love hearing from fellow Remodelaholics, so let us know what you like about this and leave any questions below in the comments. If you've followed a tutorial or been inspired by something you've seen here, we'd love to see pictures! Submit pictures here or by messaging us over on Facebook.

Published: July 14, 2016Filed Under: DIY, Guest Bloggers, How To, Landscape, Spring, Tutorials Tagged: container garden, Flowers, Garden, Guest Bloggers, monogram, Outdoor projects, planter, planters, Plants, Porch

About Cass

Cassity started Remodelaholic with her husband, Justin, to share their love for knocking out walls together. Since then, Remodelaholic has become a great community and resource for all those wanting to know how to make their builder-grade home BEAUTIFUL on a budget!


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Comments

  1. Michelle Knox says

    July 14, 2016 at 6:29 am

    Thank you you so much, so happy to share with your fabulous readers!!

    Reply
    • Cass says

      July 14, 2016 at 12:30 pm

      I can’t even express how much we LOVE your planter, Michelle! A huge hats off to you and Ryan for the great idea!

      Reply
  2. Pamela Graham says

    July 14, 2016 at 6:01 pm

    What did you do for drainage?

    Reply
    • Michelle Knox says

      July 18, 2016 at 6:40 am

      Hi! We drilled tiny holes at the bottom of each slat for proper drainage 🙂

      Reply
  3. Paula says

    July 16, 2016 at 3:40 am

    I love your plants too. Can you share what other plants you have on your porch/patio including hanging and those in planters?

    Reply
    • Katrina says

      January 2, 2017 at 3:27 pm

      They are Impatiens. I love them! They bloom throughout the summer and are a full to partial shade plant. (Prefer full shade but will survive partial shade.)

      Reply
  4. Janice I Mortimer says

    July 17, 2016 at 6:18 pm

    I am a senior, disabled even. My last name initial is “M”, oh how I would love this. What would the charge be to ask you tomake it for me? Thank you. This is really beautiful.

    Reply
  5. Mrs. Awkwardly Elegant says

    July 22, 2016 at 8:49 pm

    This planter is gorgeous! I love the pop of color and personalization it adds to the home!

    Reply
    • Michelle Knox says

      August 11, 2016 at 10:44 am

      Thank you so much for your kind words!!

      Reply
  6. Crystal says

    July 28, 2016 at 12:33 pm

    This is SOOO pretty! I absolutely love it! 🙂

    *furiously trying to figure out how to make a “c”*

    Reply
    • Anna L Guinn says

      August 2, 2016 at 9:34 pm

      You could make a C by cutting squares that’s how we are going to make a G

      Reply
      • Colleen says

        August 9, 2016 at 11:29 am

        I’ve been how to do an ‘S’ for my house! Playing with the idea of using a veneer that’s flexible for the sides, though probably nothing around that would hold up to the moisture. Also considered using the flexible landscape edging and painting white (some even have lights which would look cool at night) though that can be quite costly. Neither option allows for any face frame to be attached and I don’t want anything that doesn’t look finished’ as I’d hang mine beside the front door as well. I welcome any suggestions.

        Reply
        • Mike Bess says

          April 4, 2017 at 10:43 pm

          Try using LED Solar lights they at about $12.00 at Big Lots and you can find all kinds of different lights there.

          Reply
        • Greg says

          July 9, 2018 at 11:48 am

          you could follow these, and double the measurements
          http://www.betterwhenbuilt.com/wood-letter-plans-a-m/
          http://www.betterwhenbuilt.com/wood-letter-plans-n-z/

          Reply
  7. Zara says

    September 6, 2016 at 8:55 am

    How lucky can I get, my last name starts with a “K, this is gorgeous and thank you for sharing.

    Reply
    • Cass says

      September 6, 2016 at 1:40 pm

      Lucky girl! We’d love to see a pic when you’re finished!

      Reply
  8. Leandra says

    December 24, 2016 at 12:03 am

    I did your project and it turned out amazing! We burnt and lacquered ours. It is gorgeous! Thank you so much for the idea!!

    Reply
    • Cass says

      February 6, 2017 at 8:42 pm

      That sounds amazing, Leandra! I would love to see pics — you can submit them here: https://www.remodelaholic.com/share-brag-post/

      Reply
    • Michelle says

      February 6, 2017 at 8:49 pm

      Would love to see them!! Please find me on instagram @ellerydesigns

      Reply
  9. Erin says

    December 25, 2016 at 9:25 am

    I’m pretty lucky my last initial is “T”! I think this would be a lot easier than a K. 🙂

    Reply
  10. Joanna says

    June 6, 2017 at 7:03 am

    Thanks for sharing! My husband and I finished making the ‘P’ for our last name a few weeks ago and it hangs right in front of our garage. Looks beautiful and everyone loves it! Wish I could share a photo!

    Reply
    • Cass says

      October 5, 2017 at 9:42 pm

      Hi Joanna! I didn’t see your comment until now — we would LOVE to see photos! You can share them here: https://www.remodelaholic.com/share-brag-post/

      Reply
  11. Maggy says

    September 18, 2017 at 1:44 am

    My name starts with a M lol.This will be hard! Love this it is truly beautiful!

    Reply
  12. DAn says

    October 25, 2017 at 10:49 am

    Spring will be back soon and your monogramed wall planter is just the ticket for a side wall of my shed that backs to my garden. Great winter project for me! Thanks

    Reply
  13. Nicky says

    May 16, 2018 at 10:30 pm

    How did you secure it to the wall?

    Reply
  14. BRIAN EVERHART says

    January 4, 2020 at 7:27 am

    Just started on a “W” for my sister-in-law for their front porch. Will be a little smaller but should still hold several flowers. Pictures of the finished product soon.

    Reply
    • Justin says

      January 4, 2020 at 10:52 pm

      We would love to see how it turns out!

      Reply
  15. Rebecca Payne says

    April 9, 2020 at 10:37 am

    I love this

    Reply
  16. Taylor says

    April 10, 2020 at 7:04 am

    Love!!! How did you secure it to the siding?

    Reply
  17. SUZanne says

    January 5, 2021 at 8:58 am

    This is going to be my daughter’s ag project with help from her dad. We are tacking the letter D. She’s super existed and I can’t wait for it to be finished. It will be a eye catcher for the front of our barn.

    Reply
    • Cass says

      January 7, 2021 at 6:34 am

      It will be beautiful, and what a great project to do together! We’d love to see photos when they finish.

      Reply

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We love hearing from fellow Remodelaholics, so let us know what you like about this and leave any questions below in the comments. If you have followed a tutorial or been inspired by something you have seen here, we would love to see pictures! Submit pictures here or by messaging us over on Facebook.
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Hey there, I am Cassity! Nice to virtually meet you!

This blog is about DIY at its finest. We are obsessed with it and so are you, so while we're working and have nothing to show you of our own projects we show off yours. So submit your projects! More About Us…

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